He was lying on a hard stone surface, and his clothes were dry. He lay there for a long time, waiting to die, but nothing happened. Slowly, Merrin opened his eyes and sat up. He was back in the cave. He put a hand to his chest and felt the deep wound. Then it moved beneath his hand and he felt the edges melt seamlessly together. Merrin pulled his hand away. The blood on his palm vanished. The lantern sat on the floor beside him, still shedding a glow. If he ever got back, he would have to enshrine it.
“Feel better?” the demon purred. It crouched like a gargoyle on the floor in front of Merrin. “You did what you could. You laid down your life, but God decided to kill them anyway. Not just the ten you chose the first time, but all of them. You see? Your guilt is gone. You are free.”
“Free not to care?” he asked.
“Free to walk this earth your own man, without debt or guilt.”
Merrin hesitated. It was true. No matter what he might have done, the villagers had been doomed to die. No matter what he did down here, a war was going to begin up there. He didn’t need to be involved. He didn’t need to care. It would be so easy.
“That’s right,” the demon soothed. “Feel the peace. Feel the tranquillity. God doesn’t care one way or the other. He has His own plan.”
“And what if that plan includes me?” Merrin said suddenly.
“It doesn’t,” the demon countered. “Why would God make you suffer so much? Why put you through so much pain? Either God doesn’t care, or He’s simply cruel.”
“Or He wanted me to be in this place at this time,” Merrin said, voice rising. “To cleanse this place. To fight you in His name. This earth is not your dominion, evil one. Man is the chosen temple of God!”
A feeling of exultation swept through Merrin. He leaped to his feet and pointed at the demon. “In the name and by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, let you be snatched away and driven from the Church of God!”
The demon howled and attacked. It crashed into Merrin and drove him to the floor, raking at him with its nails again. Merrin struggled beneath the weight, unable to dislodge it. The creature grabbed his head and slammed it against the stones. Pain burst through Merrin’s skull and he saw stars.
The demon pressed its face forward, breathing into Merrin’s open mouth as it spoke. “Where’s your God now, Merrin? I’ll tell you. He’s fucking His only Son on His heavenly throne while you call out His name.”
Merrin got an arm up and rammed the heel of his hand into the demon’s forehead. It jerked backward, and he scrambled free. He backed several steps away.
“From the souls made to the image and likeness of God and redeemed by the Precious Blood of the Divine Lamb,” Merrin shouted, “I cast you out!”
The demon gathered itself to attack—
—then halted and looked confused. It actually backed up a step.
“You’re a killer, Merrin,” it said, but its voice was hoarse. “You looked them in the eye and pointed your finger and they died. Because of you. God is not here today, priest.”
Merrin whipped off his stole and jumped forward to press it to the creature’s forehead. It screamed and leaped backward in an impossible arc, landing next to a large boulder.
“In the name of the Archangel Michael, in the name of Christ and His Saints, I cast thee out!”
The demon pressed itself against the rear wall of the cave, trembling and shaking. Savage growls issued from its throat.
“In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! It is He who commands you! He who flung you from the heights of heaven to the depths of hell! Begone from this creature of—”
The demon’s hand flashed down behind the boulder and yanked Joseph out of hiding. Its fingers wrapped tight around his throat and its nails pierced his flesh. Joseph made a whimpering choke, begging Merrin with his eyes.
“No,” Merrin said, taking a step forward. The demon negligently twisted Joseph’s head sideways. Merrin heard the vertebrae creak and froze.
“You’re going to watch him die, Merrin,” the demon said. “You’re going to fail him like you failed all the others.”
“No,” Merrin said firmly. “I won’t.” He raised his voice and stepped forward again. “God, spare this child. For he is innocent and deserves Your blessing.” The demon’s fingers tensed, increasing the pressure, but Merrin didn’t retreat.
“Spare this child,” he repeated, “for he is innocent and deserves Your blessing!”
The creature’s grip faltered. For a tiny moment, Sarah’s normal face replaced the demon’s visage. In that moment, Merrin ripped Joseph away and flung him to safety. Then he wrapped his arms around Sarah as the demon slammed back into existence with insane fury. It howled and scratched at Merrin’s back like a crazed lover.
“I command you in the name of Christ to depart from this servant of God!” he bellowed. “It is the power of Christ that compels you!”
The demon went berserk, bucking and roaring with a thousand voices. Merrin held on with all his might.
“Why, Joseph?” came a voice from the blackness.
Merrin threw a glance over his shoulder. James stood in the dim light, his face and body torn and disfigured. His chest hung open, revealing white ribs and a beating heart. The ruin reached out to his little brother, who was standing by the lantern. Joseph shrank away with a cry.
“Why didn’t you help me?” James asked in a bubbly wreck of a voice.
“Don’t look, Joseph!” Merrin shouted. “It feeds off despair!”
Joseph spun around and buried his face in his hands. The demon bucked and howled in Merrin’s grip, but he kept his arms wrapped around it like stones.
“It’s God himself who commands you!” he yelled. “The majestic Christ who commands you! God the Father commands you! God the Son commands you!”
The demon went into convulsions. It threw up again, but this time it was only a faint, pasty film. Its groans were weakening. James tried to speak to his brother, but no sound came out of his mouth.
“God the Holy Spirit commands you! The mystery of the Cross commands you! The blood of the martyrs commands you! Unclean spirit, I cast you out!”
James vanished and the demon collapsed in Merrin’s arms. He was holding Sarah Novack instead. Sobs wracked her body. A rush of fatigue swept over Merrin, and he lowered himself and Sarah to the cave floor. She wept hard, tears dripping on stone with a tiny tapping sound. Joseph scrambled over to join them. Merrin put one arm around him and held Sarah tight with the other. He felt tears gather in his own eyes as he stroked Sarah’s hair.
“It’s all right,” he told them, and turned to Joseph. “You’re all right. It’s over.”
Fear crossed Joseph’s face. Merrin looked at him, puzzled. Then he became aware that his other hand was slick. He was stroking Aartje Kroon’s bloody hair, her ruined head cradled on his shoulder.
Before he could react, the figure snapped back into the gray-faced demon in Sarah’s body. The creature exploded from Merrin’s arms, sending him flying backward across the cave. He landed hard, and the air whuffed out of him. He scrambled to his feet, adrenaline surging through him. Joseph ran to hide behind him. A thousand roars mingled with a million whispers erupted around them, swirling and confusing as desert sand. The demon was nowhere to be seen, but Merrin could feel its malevolent presence.
“Joseph,” he said shakily, “I need you to help me. To read with me. Whatever you hear, whatever you see—it’s just his lies. You must focus. We must be strong. Do you understand?”
Joseph looked up at Merrin and their eyes met. Merrin saw a hardness there, a hardness no little boy should have, and his anger grew strong.
“I understand,” Joseph said.
Merrin picked up The Book of Roman Rituals from the spot where it had fallen to the floor. The demon’s roar intensified, and Merrin’s head began to ache. Holding the book open so the lantern light fell on the page, he began to read.
“ ‘O God, by Your name, save me. By Your strength, defend my cause. A
s it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end…’ ”
“ ‘Amen,’ ” Joseph read.
“ ‘Save Your servant…’ ”
“ ‘Who places his trust in Thee, my God.’ ” Joseph’s voice was high-pitched but firm. A cold breeze stirred the air, stealing down Merrin’s back like an icy hand.
“ ‘Be unto Sarah, O Lord, a fortified tower…’ ” Merrin read.
“ ‘In the face of the enemy.’ ”
“ ‘Let the enemy have no power over her. See the Cross of the Lord.” Merrin’s voice rose to be heard over the echoing roar. Wind whipped his hair and threatened to blast the book out of his hands, but he could feel the power rising within him like liquid light. “ ‘Begone, you hostile power! O Lord, hear my prayer!’ ”
“ ‘And let my cry come unto Thee!’ ” Joseph shouted.
“ ‘In the name of Archangel Michael, in the name of Christ and His saints, I cast thee out!’ ” Power and conviction swelled within Merrin and spilled over to flood the cave. His headache disappeared, his wounds stopped hurting. He stood here, in this place, as a servant to the Lord, and nothing could stop him.
“ ‘In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ! It is He who commands you! He who flung you from the heights of heaven to the depths of hell! Begone from this creature of God—’ ”
“Father!” Joseph shrieked.
From the far distant side of the cave charged a vision from hell. Merrin barely recognized Sarah’s body. The creature barreled toward him on twisted legs. Long, greasy hair streamed behind it. Its eyes blazed like green acid, its mouth hung open. A forked, gray tongue protruded from between pointed teeth. Sharp, filthy claws reached out like hungry knives. A banshee wail screamed over Merrin, freezing his marrow. Every nerve howled at him to run, to flee for safety. Instead he forced himself to step forward and push Joseph behind him. The creature surged toward him, claws ready to slice him to pieces like a desert sandstorm.
“Begone!” he bellowed. “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!”
The demon checked itself, then shook its body like a hellhound slipping its master’s leash and leaped forward again. It was only a dozen steps away. Merrin smelled warm bile and felt cold breath. Still, he didn’t retreat.
“By this sign of the Holy Cross, of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit—!” Merrin flung up his hand, like a traffic cop ordering a speeding truck to stop. A handprint slapped across the creature’s gray cheek. It howled as loud as a freight train, but it didn’t halt. Merrin yanked Francis’s little crucifix from the chain around his neck and held it out before him. It seemed a futile gesture, like taking up a slingshot to fight a giant. Merrin’s heart pounded, but he stood firm.
The creature galloped ahead, eight steps away. Five.
“God the Holy Spirit commands you!” Merrin boomed over the crucifix. Sarah, he thought, fight it!
The creature staggered as if struck. It screamed in obvious pain. Merrin’s heart leaped. Joseph whimpered once behind him. The creature gathered itself on its impossibly twisted legs to rush forward one last time.
Merrin brandished the crucifix again. “The mystery of the Cross commands you!”
The demon recoiled a step as if it had been struck in the chest. Its tongue dripped algae saliva, and the green light of its eyes flickered. Then it bellowed and rushed forward, fast as a truck, unstoppable as an avalanche. Joseph screamed.
Fight it, Sarah! Merrin thought, and tightened his fist around the crucifix. “The blood of the martyrs commands you!”
The demon’s head snapped back with an audible cracking sound, but its speed didn’t diminish. Fear filled Merrin’s chest and he could barely breathe, but he stood firm. “In God’s name, demon, I CAST YOU OUT!”
The demon slammed into him. Merrin heard a horrible crunch, as if a side of beef had fallen five stories and hit a concrete sidewalk. It took Merrin a moment to realize that the sound hadn’t come from him.
The creature’s arms and legs snapped backward. Blood spattered the cave walls and floor as it bounced off the newly-formed fortress of Merrin’s faith and crashed to the ground. Merrin stood in place, feeling solid and unmoved as stone. The creature groaned once, then fell silent.
The quiet, the absolute stillness, was unnerving. After a moment, Merrin picked out the sound of his own heartbeat and the rasp of Joseph’s frightened breathing. The creature lay on its side with its back to Merrin. Merrin couldn’t move. Blood oozed through the thin cloth of Sarah’s dress. Still Merrin couldn’t move. It was as if a firm, hard hand were pressing down on him, holding him still. Merrin looked at the creature’s bleeding back, its shattered legs.
A small hand plucked at Merrin’s shirt. “Father?” Joseph said.
The immobilizing pressure vanished. With a low cry, Merrin stumbled forward and dropped to his knees beside the ruined figure on the ground.
“Sarah?” he said. The skin on her arms and legs was no longer gray. “Sarah!”
A tiny, mewing sound. Merrin carefully rolled her over. Bones ground sickeningly beneath his hands. A lump closed Merrin’s throat and tears stung his eyes. Sarah looked up at him, her face clear of the demon. Bruises mottled her cheeks, and blood spilled freely from a cut lip. She stared up at him, eyes filled with pain.
“Lankester.” The word was a mere whisper.
“I’m here, Sarah,” he whispered back. “I’m here.”
“You…saved me.” A faint green light flickered in Sarah’s eyes. It grew stronger and began to blaze.
Merrin grabbed her, pulled her tight against him. Anger battled sorrow inside him. No. I won’t let this happen to you. You’re free, Sarah. You will be free! Sarah shuddered hard, then relaxed in his arms. Merrin felt a rush of movement, a faint breath of air that sighed once and faded with a faint wail. Merrin looked down at the woman in his arms.
“Sarah,” he said.
Her eyes closed, then opened. The green light was gone. “Lankester,” she said in a weak whisper. “Help me.”
Merrin’s hands were wet. Warm blood was leaking from the back of Sarah’s head. The leak spread. Scarlet life puddled, then pooled beneath her on the cavern floor, flowing from her broken limbs and crushed organs. Merrin looked down at her, desperate and powerless. He wanted to heal her, staunch the flow, but he didn’t have enough hands. A moment ago he had been powerful as a mountain, but even a mountain couldn’t heal the wounded.
“I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I’m so sorry.”
Sarah reached up to touch his face, then dropped her hand. “Thank…you,” she said, “for freeing…me.” Her eyes slid shut and her breath rattled in her chest.
Merrin swallowed hard, then carefully lay her down. He was only vaguely aware of Joseph padding over to stand beside him. The boy knelt, tears streaming down his face. He took Sarah’s limp hand in his own.
“Misereatur tui omnipotens Deus, et dimissis peccatis tuis,” Merrin murmured, “perducat te ad vitam aeternam.” May almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you your sins, and bring you to life everlasting.
Fighting tears of his own, he reached down and made the sign of the cross on her forehead. When he finished, Sarah exhaled one more time and was still. Silent tears fell from Merrin’s eyes.
“Father?” Joseph said.
Merrin rose and wiped his face on his sleeve. “She’s with God now.” He paused to let the words sink in—for himself as well as for Joseph. “She’s with God.”
It was Joseph who found an easier way out—another tunnel that exuded a sweet, fresh breeze. Merrin led Joseph toward increasing brightness, grateful he wouldn’t have to crawl back through the claustrophobic tube. They emerged at the base of a rocky hillside into painfully bright sunlight. The dig site was only a few yards away, but Merrin saw no sign of the church. The sandstorm had buried it completely. An occasional bloody hand or broken leg poked out of the sand, as the only hints that a fierce ba
ttle had been fought here.
Crows croaked overhead, circling lower and lower. One of them landed on the sand next to a half-buried face, and Merrin recognized Emekwi. He led Joseph away before the boy could see. Once they were a safe distance away, Merrin paused long enough to hold out his hand and murmur last rites for the second time that day. He wanted to do more, but it was the best he could manage.
Epilogue
Nairobi, British East Africa
Every burning conflict eventually settles into charcoal.
—Kenyan proverb
THE OUTDOOR CAFÉ smelled of tomatoes, coffee, and fresh-baked bread. Passers-by crowded the sidewalk, but automobile traffic was light. It was early winter, and there was a definite nip in the air despite the noonday sun. Merrin drew his coat more closely around him and sat down across from Semelier. The older man had traded white linen for brown tweed, though he still rested both hands atop his walking stick. A cup of coffee steamed on the table in front of him.
“It’s freezing out here,” Merrin said, blowing on his hands. “Why didn’t you pick a table inside?”
“You’ve been in Africa too long, my friend,” Semelier laughed. “It’s a fine day for coffee on the terrace.” To prove his point, he took a long, slow sip from the cup. “Ah! Italian coffee is one thing I do miss when I have to be at home.”
“And just where is your home?”
“That’s not important,” Semelier said with another sip.
A waiter bustled over, but Merrin waved the man away. Then he reached into his coat pocket and dropped a thick brown envelope on the table. Semelier raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question.
“It’s your money back,” Merrin said. “I didn’t find what you were looking for.”
Semelier smiled and shook his head. “But you found something, didn’t you?”
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